In the world of freight logistics, the demand for specialized services is growing. Along with refrigerated freight, liquid bulk freight is emerging as a niche that savvy Freight Brokers are eager to explore.
For Brokers willing to dive deep into the complexities of liquid bulk shipments, the opportunities are vast, with the chance to carve out a dedicated space in a market that demands precision, efficiency, and specialized knowledge.
Let’s take a look at what liquid bulk is, how Freight Brokers for bulk liquid shipments optimize liquid logistics, and what to consider to make the switch into this niche.
What is Liquid Bulk Shipping?
Liquid bulk shipping involves transporting bulk quantities of liquids – whether they be food-grade, chemicals, hazardous materials, or otherwise – in specialized tanker trucks. Proper handling, safety measures, and compliance are essential for a successful bulk liquid shipment.
Bulk liquid applies to a diverse range of cargo:
- Chemicals (examples: hydrogen peroxide, solvents, resins, mining chemicals)
- Water
- Milk
- Gasoline
- Alcohol
- Juice
- Syrup
- Vegetable oils
- Essential oils
- Vinegar
Each type of liquid has its own specifics to consider when being shipped, such as preventing contamination, preserving quality, and maintaining temperature.
What’s Involved with Managing Liquid Bulk Transport?
The role of a Liquid Bulk Freight Agent is to oversee the transportation of the freight from pickup to delivery, ensuring safe and compliant shipments.
Coordinate Carriers
One of the reasons Shippers rely on Freight Agents is because they have access to a larger carrier network than they would likely have on their own. Freight Agents must be sure to find vetted carriers with the proper certifications and equipment to transport each unique liquid bulk load.
Utilize Technology
All Freight Agents must be able to track their loads in real time. This is where Transportation Management Systems (TMS) come into play. TMS makes it easier to provide real-time load updates to Shippers and provide solutions to problems that arise, or even before they do. This can save time for Shippers and provide peace of mind.
A skilled Freight Agent can track capacity, anticipate demand, and arrange bulk liquid carriers with minimal downtime.
Ensure Regulatory Compliance and Safety
Agents source carriers with specialized tanks, pumps, or connectors for easy loading and unloading of the specific bulk freight. This requires bulk liquid expertise, whether the freight is food-grade, hazardous material, or chemicals. Understanding the ins and outs of compliance is critical. To learn more, take a look at the DOT regulations for tanker shipments.
What to Consider When Specializing in Liquid Bulk
Liquid bulk is a profitable niche, but does take specialized skills, and has its own set of risks.
Earning Potential
Freight Agents typically earn a margin based on load rates. Commissions vary by Broker, shipment complexity, and the company’s pricing model. Experienced Agents specializing in liquid freight can often command higher fees due to added complexity.
At Kopf, we pay 70/30 commission splits, which are some of the highest in the industry. We do not cap earnings as some brokerages do, so be mindful of that when choosing one to work with.
Specialized Skills
In addition to excellent customer service, sales and negotiating skills, excellent communication, liquid bulk Freight Agents and Brokers must also have a clear understanding of how to ship liquid freight (we recommend this free downloadable “Liquid Bulk Shipping 101” from Bulk Connection).
They must also be skilled at utilizing a vast carrier network of vetted carriers who have the proper driver certifications and equipment to transport the specific liquid freight. This does require specialized knowledge in understanding the legal compliance of transporting food-grade liquid or hazardous cargo.
Risks
Let’s not sugar-coat things. Bulk liquid freight can be hazardous and accidents with tankers can be catastrophic. Since liquid bulk is stored in one large tanker, rather than smaller containers, it is easier for an entire load to be damaged. Small leaks can become big problems.
In addition, tankers are a specialty type of vehicle. This results in two things: longer lead times and higher rates. It can be harder to find tankers since there are less available. It also costs carriers more to purchase, insure, and maintain tankers, which increases the cost to utilize them in transportation. For instance, tankers must be cleaned after every load and loads cannot be combined. So if a load is LTL (less than truckload) it is transported as is, without a rate reduction.
There are also different requirements for drivers of tankers. They must obtain a specialized tanker endorsement. In addition, if they are transporting hazardous materials, drivers will also need hazmat certification. If freight is to be consumed by humans, Freight Agents must ensure the carrier is abiding by FDA and FSMA regulations.
Choosing a Trusted Brokerage
Liquid bulk needs to be moved, and if you are an Independent Freight Agent looking to diversify your book of business, it is worth considering digging deeper into this profitable niche. As industries ranging from chemicals to food and beverage rely on the transport of large quantities of liquids, the need for expertise in this sector is more critical than ever.
Bottom line: If you are interested in specializing in liquid bulk, take time to research and be sure to work with a brokerage with solid financial backing you can trust to support your Freight Agency.
Transporting liquid bulk is risky, but choosing a brokerage to work with doesn’t have to be. At Kopf Logistics Group, we’ve been in the transportation and logistics industry for over 40 years. We are a trusted name in the industry with strong financial backing, 24/7 business office support, award-winning TMS, and industry leading 70/30 commission splits.
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